Old splitter rebuild

[4seasons]

I have been away for a while due to a traffic accident that I almost died in. Now that I can walk again I don't have the strength or stamina to split wood by hand anymore. Lucky I was several years ahead on my wood supply, but after 3 years my split pile is running low. Those who know me also know that I hate to pay new prices for anything so when I ran across a broken splitter for sale I snatched it up. I paid less for this splitter than I could have bought the cylinder for, so I consider the beam, wedge, axle, tires, wheels, engine, pump, and tank to be free.

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[4seasons]

I knew right away that the hoses would need to be replaced because it had copper lines ran throughout. The picture in my last post I had already replaced them to try it out. This is the lines it had on it.

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[4seasons]

I knew when I bought it that the pump was not the best and the engine was small and old. 5.5 HP Briggs using a 3 to 1 underdrive pulley belt system to spin a 1980 Toyota Corona power steering pump. My test splits would bust small straight wood but would not push through a small Ash crotch. It would kill the engine even after I rebuilt the carb and put fresh gas in as well as flushing out all the old contaminated hydraulic fluid.

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[4seasons]

During testing I also noticed how slow the ram moved even under no load. I was getting 45 second cycle times, which calculates to a 3 gpm pump [emoji24]. Lucky it is a Toyota pump and I know a bit about them. I removed the valve from under the output and shimmed the pressure spring and drilled out the output to increase flow. I knew that the engine was probably not up to the task but I have some other engines around so I gave it a shot. This mod gave me a 5 gpm pump and 30 second cycle times. Still way too slow but it did bust that crotch that stalled it before. But I ran into another problem as my cylinder extension hose is only 1/4 inch the fluid return on the retract is restricted to the point of stalling the engine. I plan on changing engine and pump and getting a pressure gauge along with proper size hoses soon. Right now I am working on putting the hitch on the other end, building a work table, and adding a log lift. I also plan on replacing the joke of a hydraulic tank on it.

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[4seasons]

I took a little trip to the lawn mower junkyard and look what followed me home. I was looking at a 12.5 HP Briggs on a better mower and 14.5 single cylinder Briggs but it was missing a starter. Then I checked under the hood and saw the twin cylinder 18 hp Briggs. I will go through it before I try to fire it up especially the carb, but if it still puts out close to the 18 hp it claimes it should open up some options. I could push a 28gpm pump for 5 second cycle times, but I'm curious if the 2 second faster cycle times are worth the extra cost to set it up over a 22 gpm.
I was hoping that someone with more hydraulic experience might chime in do I need to step up to 1 inch hoses to push a 28 gpm or will 3/4 get it done? Same question on the 22 gpm pump. Will 1/2 inch hoses handle it or do I need 3/4? I also was curious if there is any 2 stage pump that has an ajustment for the high flow side to make it stay in hi to say 1200 psi instead of going low at 650 psi as my bigger motor could push it harder in high?
Thanks in advance for your assistance and especially real world experience of working with these faster cycle times.

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[rancher2]

Looks like your cylinder is only set up for 1/2 ports. I would probably not spend the extra money for a 28 GPM pump for that cylinder. A 22 GPM pump will make that cylinder cycle very nice. Only problem with vertical motors is you will have to build or make over a pump mount to fit that motor.

 

[4seasons]

The cylinder and valve both have 3/4 npt ports, they all have step down bushings in them now for the small hoses.
I am not worried about the motor mount as I have a welder and can fab up some way to made it fit. It actually looks like it had a vertical shaft motor on it before from the large flat plate under the motor and pump and the 4 inch round hole in it.
I have played with the idea of using a gear drive single stage pump, but it is hard to find information on how much power it takes for which displacement pump. I would also have to figure out my own motor to pump mount if I went that way so I probably will go the normal 2 stage route.
I did find a few pumps with an adjustable shift point but they only go to 900 psi max on the high side and I think the 18 hp could push it harder than that since 900 psi only gives me 5.5 tons of force. I don't want to have to use low gear to bust every log.

 

[rancher2]

If you have 3/4 ports I don't mine buying new hoses I would step up to a 28 GPM two stage pump. I run one on on a splitter with a 18 HP Briggs twin and a 4 inch cylinder and love the speed it has.

 

[Ted Jenkins]

I took a little trip to the lawn mower junkyard and look what followed me home. I was looking at a 12.5 HP Briggs on a better mower and 14.5 single cylinder Briggs but it was missing a starter. Then I checked under the hood and saw the twin cylinder 18 hp Briggs. I will go through it before I try to fire it up especially the carb, but if it still puts out close to the 18 hp it claimes it should open up some options. I could push a 28gpm pump for 5 second cycle times, but I'm curious if the 2 second faster cycle times are worth the extra cost to set it up over a 22 gpm.
I was hoping that someone with more hydraulic experience might chime in do I need to step up to 1 inch hoses to push a 28 gpm or will 3/4 get it done? Same question on the 22 gpm pump. Will 1/2 inch hoses handle it or do I need 3/4? I also was curious if there is any 2 stage pump that has an ajustment for the high flow side to make it stay in hi to say 1200 psi instead of going low at 650 psi as my bigger motor could push it harder in high?
Thanks in advance for your assistance and especially real world experience of working with these faster cycle times.

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Here is what I did. I had one pump that was coupled to the motor with about 30 CFM with another pump that was about 10 CFM, but was belt driven. Pull the control lever on the hard to split rounds while much of the time use the faster pump. My conclusion is to stay with the 28 CFM two stage with much less hassle and not have to worry about the belt and extra plumbing. Also fine tuning the auto detent to not return all the way back to save some of the recycle time. Thanks

 

[4seasons]

I am leaning towards the 28 gpm 2 stage but I have also found some deals on both a 22gpm and 19gpm.
My valve is not a detent and I am unsure of the flow capacity as well. I am planning on replacing it with a new detent valve but most seem to have a 25 gpm Max.
I don't know how to set the detent to limit the stroke, but it is only a 24 inch stroke and I tend to cut my rounds 20-22 inch so I don't think I'll gain much there. But I am curious about the valve I have if anyone wants to identify it.

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[4seasons]

I have also been thinking about my push-plate and slide and if it has a heavy enough mount. Most that I have seen are long with several bolts and mine just has simple hooks wrapped around the side of the I beam. I don't know if going to higher pressures and bigger logs will work this way.

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[muddstopper]

Interesting used of rail anchors on the pusher slide.

I have a 28gpm pump on my splitter, but really, I would probably just stick with the 22gpm. You can run 28gpm thru 3/4 ports, but it will create more heat. It would be hard to guess the capacity of the control valve you already have. Looks like a old gresen, probably off some old piece of equipment. Most are rated for only 25gpm. The return oil flow, even using a 22gpm pump, will be a lot more than the 25gpm rating. Again, it will work, but the restriction is only making more heat. The 18hp engine will pull the 22gpm two stage pump easily.

As for regulating the return stroke by adjusting the detent, wont work and isnt designed to work that way. The detent relies on pressure build up in order to kick back into neutral. The detent pressure has to be adjusted just high enough for the cyl to completely retract and the moment the pressure starts to build as the cyl bottoms out, the detent will kick back into neutral. To limit stroke, you can use something to stop the cyl from reaching full retraction.They make sleeves that go on the cyl shaft just for that stiutation. You can also drill a hole in your beam and insert a bolt for the slide to hit as it retracts, or fashion some sort of bolt on stop. Anything solid that will provide a solid stop for the slide to contact as it retracts.

Making a pump mount for a vertical shaft motor isnt that hard. There are 3 or 4 different bolt circles for the base of the vertical engines. You just need to find what size base your engine has. The one thing about the bolt pattern is that even tho the bolts are on a certain bolt circle, the bolt holes are not always evenly spaced. I believe that Surplus Center has a chart in their technical section that gives the boil circle and pattern for various small engines. Find the pattern that fits you engine and lay it out on a piece of metal and start drilling holes. A pump mount will also have its own bolt circle. Just be sure to use the same bolt circle center point when laying out the motor mount and the pump mount. This will ensure that the pump shaft and engine shaft run true to each other. Dont worry about the pump being vertical, it doesnt care it it lays flat or upright, it will work in either position. As for the plate you make the mount out of, if you use a heavy plate, like 1/2", you will be able to thread the bolt holes and have enough metal to bolt everything together without needing nuts and lock washers. Not necessary for sure, lawnmower decks are pretty thin so nuts and bolts do work. Decks do rust out and break in a few years. Just something to think about.

 

[4seasons]

Well with all my welding projects piling up my wire feed gave out. So my splitter build went on hold until the new motor comes in (in September.) So I turned my attention to the pump and motor. While looking at pumps (pretty much decided on 22 gpm) I am looking for the highest psi high flow cutout. The most I can find is 900 psi. With an 18 hp motor, I think I could push one higher, but along the way I found this pump on Amazon but in the description it says not to use universal tractor fluid. I had planned on using JD303 just like my tractor takes, partially because I don't want to have yet another fluid in the shed to have to sort through, but mainly because I have a lot of it on hand already.
Is this a normal requirement of 2 stage pumps or something that only matters in this brand?

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[muddstopper]

R&O: rust & oxidation protection, anti-foam
AW: R&O plus anti-wear additive
Universal tractor oil: AW plus friction modifiers for wet brakes and clutches, high pressure gear additives for final drives, high water tolerance,
I have an opinion, but it is just that, and opinion. I wouldnt hesitate to use the universal oil in the pump. If the pump has bronze wear plates, the friction modifiers in the universal oil might be a wear factor but univeral oil is all my homemade splitter has ever had in it.

 

[4seasons]

Time to dig up an old thread and breathe new life into both it and my splitter.

I broke it. I ran it slow and underpowered for a while and found the weak spots. I noticed some beam twist and deflection under a tough split and then I noticed the cylinder was moving around. Some of the bolts had loosened but when tightening them I found the actual problem. The welds that hold the cylinder mount to the beam are broken. After close inspection I discovered just how bad a welder had built this. I cut the other welds off to redo them as well. Some pretty good examples of what your welds should not look like here.

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